Alex Pietrangelo? He won the Stanley Cup twice. He is one of the key players of the Golden Knights, perhaps thanks to his excellent defense of the opponent’s strong points. But for two games in a row, he gave away the numerical superiority of Dallas with unnecessary fouls, and then he was noticeably absent on the ice. This time it was the winning goal off the stick of Jason Robertson.
One of the most experienced players, self-sacrificing mover, leader type.
A guy who can play horse portions of minutes.
That’s Pietrangelo as the hockey public knows him. As a macho capable of even heroic feats.
But he also has an Italian temperament. And it sometimes bubbles up at the most inopportune moment. Just remember last year’s series with the Edmonton Oilers and the ax addressed to Leon Draisaitl.
It resulted in a one-match suspension.
The Stars are helping them a lot at the moment. They managed to turn the series from 0:2 to games (and they started on their own ice) to 3:2, and they are only one triumph away from advancing.
Golden Knights coach Bruce Cassidy is understandably not happy about it.
And he did not hide behind phrases during the press conference. At a distance, he also outwitted Pietrangelo, from whom he expects a performance worthy of support and not short-circuits. “A seasoned fighter like that should know what’s allowed,” he said.
When asked by overseas reporters if Pietrangelo disappointed or surprised him, the Vegas coach said, “Both.”
Sure, Pietrangelo may have gone after Tyler Seguin sharply with laudable motivation. He probably also wanted to defend his partner Shey Theodore, whom Seguin had previously hit in the head.
But he couldn’t handle the situation. It was an intercontinental call, a very expensive two minutes. “We need to improve our discipline,” Cassidy commands.
Of course, he is primarily referring to Pietrangelo, who received a schoolboy penalty for roughing two games in a row and Dallas picked up the thrown glove each time. In both cases, it was a very important hit.
And so the Stars are missing the last step to advance. And also payback for last year’s Western Conference Finals.
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Tags: Pietrangelo sinks Vegas improve discipline Cassidy commands
